Rhythm Dot Chart

This Saturday I attended an inservice put on by the Capital Section of CMEA.  I love going to workshops, I always come back with so many new ideas to use with my kiddos.  One of those ideas was introduced during a session on beginning band.  It looks extremely simple but can be used in a number of ways.  There is a 4x4 grid, with a large dot in some of the boxes.  Students can play where the dots are on their mouthpiece and rest when there is nothing in the square.  They read the grid left to right, top to bottom, completing 4 measures of 4/4 rhythms.  Then, you can shock the students by rotating the grid, creating a brand new set of rhythms for them to play.  I was not able to get a picture of this side of the grid, but on the back side, this is what it looks like

This side introduced the use of eighth notes, but the presenter suggested not telling the students how to play it, just have them experiment a few times and then have them play the 2 faster notes evenly.  This chart can also facilitate students playing different parts simultaneously by having 2 students come up and stand on either side of the chart and play from bottom to top on their side.  To add difficulty, add 2 more students (total of 4) playing from the remaining 2 sides of the chart for a fun and complex polyrhythm.  

The presenter was using this for beginning band before having students play from a method book, but I think this would also be a great tool with recorders, clapping/body percussion, or classroom instruments.  This could easily segue into a composition project as well.  There are so many possibilities with this simple 2 sided chart, I am very excited to incorporate it in my classroom!

Introduction and Background

I can't promise that I am going to be very good at this whole "blogging" thing, but it is one of my goals to at least give it a solid try.  I am a 23 year old teacher in California in the 2nd month of my 2nd year of teaching. I certainly don't pretend to have everything figured out yet, but I try to improve every day and am always open to new ideas and approaches to teaching.  On this blog I will be posting activities and strategies I have learned from my undergraduate studies, workshops I have attended, picking experienced teachers' brains, and from my own experience thus far.  This blog will not be limited to teaching information, I am also an avid traveler and will post about my travels and any tips I pick up along the way (heading to Greece in less than a month!!) as well as things about life in general.

A little about me...
I grew up in a small town (under 4,000 people) in Alaska where the closest Walmart was a 6 hour car ride away and the average snowfall was over 300 inches.  When I was 18 I wanted nothing more than to get out of Alaska and try something new, so I came to California for college, met a boy, graduated, and found a job in California.  This is the beginning of my 6th year living in "the golden state".  In March of my senior year of college, I was offered a job at a brand new charter school in the town I went to school in.  It was a very small school and gave me a unique opportunity to start my own music program for TK-8th grade from scratch.  It was very challenging and I learned a lot from that experience, unfortunately, administrative issues caused me to want to look elsewhere for employment, so this year I am working for a large public school district.  Other than teaching and traveling, I enjoy yoga, playing my piano, trying out different crafts, and being a bum on the couch (or beach).

the boyfriend and I in Santa Cruz

for Labor Day weekend

my Alaskan home in the summer

and in the winter

My first solo trip to France - Bordeaux

St. Jean de Luz

Just a messy music teacher :)